Community Partners Mobilize to Help Feed More Hungry Neighbors

Creating a better world begins with the basics, and for millions of people that means finding enough food for themselves and their families. Ford Motor Company Fund understands that food insecurity is a growing issue in the U.S., and Ford Fund is expanding its reach into local communities to make a difference for more of our neighbors.

For the 11th consecutive year, Ford Motor Company and Newman’s Own®, Inc. are partnering with Feeding America to donate Ford refrigerated trucks filled with Newman's Own food products to community food banks. The two organizations have worked in partnership to contribute more than 100 refrigerated trucks for pick-up and delivery of nutritious perishable foods. The fleet of Ford trucks and vans reaches into every state in the country.

"Ford Motor Company has remained committed to playing a role in addressing hunger relief year after year,” said Jim Vella, president, Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services. “Through this unique partnership, our donated trucks have delivered more than 175 million meals to families across the country.”

The "Partnership for Hunger Relief" began when Paul Newman reached out to Bill Ford, the company's executive chairman, to improve the distribution of produce and other perishable food to those facing hunger in rural America.

“We have seen a dramatic rise in the number of people seeking food assistance from the Feeding America network. Today, we are feeding 37 million people each year—a staggering 46 percent increase since 2006,” said Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America. “The Ford Motor Company and Newman’s Own have been long-time, generous supporters of our mission.”

The Partnership for Hunger Relief is one of many hunger relief efforts supported by Ford. Ford Motor Company Fund partnered with Forgotten Harvest and Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan to help provide 2 million meals to hungry children in the Hunger Free Summer campaign.

Ford Fund and The Parade Company worked together on Ford: Driving Food Home for the Holidays and Beyond, a winter campaign to encourage donations to Gleaners, which has seen a 60 percent increase in people served since 2006.

The Ford Mobile Food Pantry program has provided Transit Connect vans to nearly two dozen food banks from Florida and New York to Georgia, Oregon and Texas. This fleet of Ford Mobile Food Pantries is expanding in 2012 to meet the needs of more people in more communities. In SE Michigan alone, more than 900,000 people were fed in 2011 thanks to ten Ford Mobile Food Pantries.

"The Transit Connect is a smaller, more nimble vehicle that food banks can easily fill and drive to locations that are difficult to reach or face an urgent need," said Janet Lawson, director, Ford Volunteer Corps. "The Ford Mobile Food Pantries are on the road continuously taking food wherever it's needed most." Ford volunteers regularly work at food banks and soup kitchens throughout the year. The volunteers sort food and stock shelves, cook and serve meals, and help make deliveries to needy residents.

"There's a lot of need out in the community and a lot of ways we can help the community become a better place," said James Boileau, technical specialist, Ford Research and Innovation Center. "Members of our team are helping and these are people with really big hearts who are ready to give back to the community."